The Conard boys soccer team beat Berlin Tuesday night in the home opener in West Hartford.

By Ronni Newton

Conard started off the fall 2014 soccer season with a decisive victory over the Berlin Redcoats Tuesday afternoon, winning 5-1 at home at McKee Stadium.

The Chieftains were led by senior co-captain Erik Ribeiro, who knocked in the team’s first three goals unassisted for a hat trick in the first half of the game. Fellow co-captain Sebi Regnifo scored Conard’s fourth goal on a direct kick with 31:45 left in the second half.

Sophomore Lenny Windhorst scored Conard’s final goal, with 4:03 left in the game, assisted by Juan Ariza.

Berlin’s single goal was scored by Justin Park with 11:15 left in the second half. Brandon Rocco had the assist.

Conard is coming off its most successful season ever, reaching the quarterfinals of the 2013 Class LL Championship before losing 2-1 to eventual co-champion Ridgefield.

This year’s team includes many new faces on the starting lineup, after a large number of seniors, including significant offensive force All-American Gatorade Player of the Year Matheus Souza, who is now a member of the UConn Husky men’s soccer team, graduated.

“I’m very proud of my team. They came out and executed what we’ve worked on in practice and moved the ball around well,” said Conard head coach Adam Linker. “Our offense was faster than their defense, but we’ve also put a ton of time into our defense and I am equally proud of how we defended,” Linker said.

Stephen Espinal is the only defensive player who saw significant playing time last year.

Berlin head coach Salvatore Parafati said that his team is young, and rebuilding after the loss of nine starters.

“We gave [Ribeiro] a lot of space, too much space, and he punished us for it. It’s tough to come back once you’re down 3-0,” Parafati said.

Linker said he used the preseason to work on different aspects of the game, as a measuring tool to try out different players in various positions.

CPTV Sports recorded Tuesday’s game, and it will be aired on Saturday, Sept. 13 at 7 p.m. Check www.cptvsports.org for additional information.

The Chieftains travel to Southington on Friday, Sept. 12. Game time is 3:45 p.m.

“They’re going to come at us hard. The CCC West is crazy, and you can’t overlook anyone,” Linker said.

Berlin faces Bristol Central on Thursday night at Sage Park.